Astronomika - Shooting Down Falling Stars (IC)

[Frantic Author]

Alexstrasza Lockhart
Location: Pinefall High Dormitory – Souma Nubatama’s Bedroom (Room 109)
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

I waited patiently outside of the monster's door, leaning back and forth from my heels to my toes, feeling the sensation of the wooden floors underneath my feet as it spread into my shoes. This was a bit of a drastic decision, but Souma - at least, the last time I had spoken to him - had both seen and comprehended the man without a face at least one time before. Naturally, it is far easier to track down someone when you have a person with a comprehensive understanding of them at your side. As a monster, Souma had a natural understanding of 'death' and 'life' that very few could equal or match. It was something that I could easily acknowledge, and understand. There was a level of 'mutual understanding' between monsters. Everything can be boiled down to the simplest of all solutions: violence.

Souma was kind of enough to open the door for me, and I peeked between his frame to see the inside of his absurdly spartan room. With widening eyes, I waved a hand rapidly over Souma's shoulder, standing on my tiptoes.

"Salutations, Mister Dove! I am pleased to see that you are alive and well after our most interesting adventure into the hospital! I am also delighted to inform you that Cesarina, too, continues to remain amongst the living!"

I nodded my head rapidly, crossing my arms with a pleased smile on my face. It was only natural that I inform others who have aided me of the continued success of our mutually defined goals.

"The man without a face, however, chose to intrude upon my ears through a telephone call. While I was capable of dissuading him from attacking Mercedes, mere taunts are not enough to convince a killer of his caliber from his goals," I said, shrugging my shoulders with a twitch of my eye that I could not manage to hold back. "He informed me that he has already taken another's life - but was not kind enough to inform me who."

Looking at Souma, I gave him a wide grin and held my hand up in a "V", winking one eye.

"Naturally, I was searching for the only person I knew of who would be willing to venture with me on a search for a murderer!"

I paused, frowning as I tapped a finger to my cheek and bit my lip, wracking my brain. Was I forgetting something important? Today is the day I die, after all, so I do not have much time left until my current life comes to an end, ruthlessly brought down by the Assassin. As I poured over my experiences of last week, I froze - my mouth opening wide as I looked at Souma in horror.

I hadn't actually spoken to him, had I!? He didn't even know who I was! I panicked for a moment, looking left and right, before I stared at Souma nervously, my eyes peeking towards a point slightly above his left ear.

"I-I mean, um... Greetings, fellow classmate! I don't believe we've spoken before," I said with a minor tremor in my voice, holding my hand up to wave at Souma briefly with trembling fingers. "We are similar in some ways, and quite different in others! Incidentally, did you know that there is a murderer on the loose?"

At least, that was true last week.

[Spinach]

Colt Davin
Location: Spade Queen Country Club - Lobby
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994
Weather: Overcast

A set of precious keys were unexpectedly, casually tossed towards the boy. In his bleary state he reached out to catch them, failing to connect with his grip, but bounced them up enough to make another attempt.

Relieved that they were back, and that he only looked mildly uncool catching them, Colt let out a small sigh.

“No harm, no foul.” He said back to Liana, twirling the ring around his finger before depositing the keys back into his pocket. “If you’re in one piece I reckon the bike is too, so it’s fine. Buuuuut…”

Colt lazily stretched his arms and yawned.

“If you’re gonna offer to make breakfast, I’ll take you up on it. I’ll think of it as… something like payback, for the little spin you took it for.” He smiled faintly, happy with himself for finding a convenient excuse to let a girl- two girls, pretty ones at that, cook for him. “But’cha know, I don’t have that big of an appetite… I’m actually kinda a small eater. I’m more of the snacking type. So you don’t have to go too crazy…”

He slightly shifted his eyes.

“But I do like pancakes and bacon.”

He delivered the admittance resolutely, with finality.

“Eggs too. Scrambled.”

Finality that lasted a mere three seconds.

“And French toast.”

His eyes had veered far from Liana and Cathie, and after signing up for the full course, he coughed into a balled fist as if to clear his throat.

“I guess while that’s being taken care of… I still need to talk to Agent Ferguson about something…”

[Thalraxal]

Elise Pelltier
Location: Avery's Diner
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

Elise hastily pulled out her notepad out from her pocket and prepared to jot down notes as Samuel spoke. She flipped in vain through the notepad for a blank space, but found page after page of her notepad filled with smiley faces and drawings of different soda logos.

"I think there was something about the class at the time. Something that made it rather weird situation. Media cover-up, even. Can't say if it's right, but I have this feeling... one of the teens who survived was maybe related to this big celebrity family. I think the name was... West, maybe? From California. Lots of strange rumours swirled about. Like how all of them went mad. Or that there was a serial killer on the loose. Or how it was the fault of the Disembodied Man. They say he was spotted around at the time. But hard to say the truth - because everything was shut up. News, police, any investigation. Or so Remmie and Angelica theorized."

Samuel recounted what he recalled of the Pinefall High School Massacre of '73. The apparent cover-up of the event, and the rumours surrounding the event, however the name of one of the survivors caught Elise's full attention.

"West?" Elise glanced over to Lucille with an arched eyebrow and asked, "Has Mercedes mentioned anything like this?"

This is way too much of a coincidence, and this town isn't big enough to support them.

She turned back to Samuel.

"One of our classmates, who you met last night, our driver, Mercedes West, is a celebrity from California," explained Elise, "If a relative of hers was one of the two survivors of the Pinefall High School Massacre though, I can't imagine why they'd want Mercedes to go back here..."

Maybe the rest of her family did go mad?

"A punishment. A horrible punishment."

Elise nodded slowly to Samuel's assessment of their predicament.

"At the end of the last loop, one of our friends, John Dove, encountered the Disembodied Man. Mercedes was there with him, incidentally,"

A West and one other student survived the Pinefall High Massacre, apparently. Was it just chance that last week came down to two final survivors as well, with one of them being a West?

"The Disembodied Man said something to them to that effect: You did not protect it. It will never end. Unless you all... recollect your crime."

Recollect your crime... thought Elise as she took a moment to consider the apparent inconsistencies in her own memory, I can see how that can apply to me, but what about the others? Lucille isn't even guilty of the crime she blames herself for. What about John, Hisa, Prushka or Elaine? I can't imagine any of them having done something so terrible that it'd warrant being trapped in moment of time to be murdered repeatedly, endlessly, for eternity. I can't imagine anything that would warrant that.

Maybe none of us did anything to deserve this, and we're all just at the mercy of a capricious gaoler?

"I've been working on the 'recollect your crime' bit, but I'm not sure about the rest of it... Speaking of which, what about the Disembodied Man? I've only heard a little bit about him, but apparently he is to blame for a considerable amount of our suffering. I'll admit, I don't know much about him-"

The memory of LBJ's mocking laughter echoed in her ears as it had taunted her about not knowing enough about the local myths and legends late in the previous week.

"-just what Jake told me about him: He's a man who's not a man. He stands as a silhouette in the dark forest, and nothing more, where he's waiting. You must not look at him, or else he'll start moving and follow you, and spirit you away into the woods. That, and his appearance seems to be something a dark omen, like a herald of doom, around these parts."

"Otherwise, I've wondered myself if what happened at Pinefall twenty-one years ago wasn't something unlike our little predicament. If time's repeating itself, why not history?" asked Elise rhetorically, "Actually, I've nosed around the half of the dormitory building that's still in ruins. It's pretty much untouched since the Massacre... Even after they renovated the half our class lives in. A friend of mine found the remains of one of the former students in there, actually... they'd hidden inside a cupboard and got trapped there. I, uhm-"

Elise paused, sparing a glance towards the deputy before continuing in a very hushed tone.

"-moved the remains of the student to the St. Diane's Cemetery for proper burial, as is my duty and right as an Undertaker to ensure that they have a proper burial and are laid to rest. A psychic friend of ours-"

Hisa.

"-was able to use their powers to read the remains and look at their past-"

That's a gross oversimplification of Hisa's powers, but she's antsy about people learning about her powers, so I'm trying to be vague here.

"-and saw a monster rampaging through the dormitory halls that day. That the person hiding in the cupboard had hidden in there to try and escape them, only to end up being trapped in there by the same monster. I, ah, I hate to poke at a old wounds but, according to them, the monster matched the description of the monster you encountered in the woods seven years ago-"

Elise paused with a wince, that was probably not a day Samuel wanted to think about again so soon.

"-and the one that Lucille encountered in the Pool Building last Sunday," continued Elise, with a motion of her head towards Lucille, "It seems like its been tormenting Road's End for a long time... and we're likely to encounter it again, and soon. You wouldn't happen to know anything more about it either?"

"....... Hmm. Maybe the prophecy could tie into this all. I only read it once, and don't... don't remember it word-for-word. But I know that while our grandfather was sure it was a Named Demon - Gaap to be more specific, it was... never actually mentioned. A Named Demon, that is. Much less Gaap. It did talk about things like adversaries, beasts, monsters or such but... I'm sure it did not specify Gaap himself. All of that was just conjecture and deduction from Ezekiel Lowgate. Though, from what I understand of what Remmie told, one of the things connected to all of that might be... Little Eli. The girl I think you mean by the name 'Gradient'," he added. "After all, the name 'Eli' was just an abbreviation of what we initially called her. Or what Remmie called her for some reason, after I lent some books to her."

"She called her 'Elijah' of all things."

Elise felt a pang of frustration at Samuel's lack of knowledge of the details of his family's prophecy. A prophecy that had consumed his family's efforts for generations, and ultimately led his family to ruin.

Considering what that prophecy has done for his family, I can't say I blame him for not wanting to get involved in it, no matter how inconvenient it is for me.

Still, Elise felt some relief that the Lowgate Prophecy apparently didn't specifically mention Gaap, or even specify that a Named Demon was the great calamity destined to befall Road's End. That Gaap's role in the prophecy was conjecture by Ezekiel Lowgate.

Although Michael seemed pretty sure that LBJ and I were the 'demon of old', and that we were something in his way to usurping our 'role' as the great calamity. Still, if my role in this prophecy is just an interpretation of the prophecy and not ironclad, well, that gives me quite a bit of wiggle room either way.

"Any chance you know where I might be able to still find a written copy of the prophecy?" asked Elise, "I wouldn't mind getting a look at it myself."

Elise flipped through the pages of her notepad and stared at the various pages filled with smiley faces and soda logos, and thought of the artist. She thought of that terrifying moment for herself and the demon when she'd felt that cold, harsh and dreadful killing intent arise from her normally cheerful friend. As her eyes bore into her, taking aim and preparing to utterly annihilate her... Thankfully, that moment past, fast enough that Elise wasn't even sure if Gradient was even aware that it had happened.

Even if Ezekiel Lowgate was wrong about the nature of the calamity, he still summoned Gradient to combat the evil he thought was going to be here. She's tied up in the prophecy nonsense just as much as I am.

"As for Gradient, Elijah, well, I'm pretty sure she's tied up into the prophecy too," began Elise.

She looked up from her notepad and up to Samuel, "Do you know anything about the Salpinx of Woe? I heard that your grandfather found it in the Judean Desert and had it brought here, to Road's End."

[Katie]

Lucille Faraday
Location: Avery's Diner
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

“Mercedes…” Lucille mutters, as Samuel mentions the West name. It can’t be a coincidence. They have all been gathered here for some reason or another, but the question was, if Mercedes’ relative was a massacre survivor, why send her here? It made no sense. Then again…

"Has Mercedes mentioned anything like this?"

“She doesn’t get along with her mother, and hasn’t mentioned anything else about her family,” Lucille eventually says, wondering how much she is allowed to reveal. She settles on this much. Nothing too revealing. “Her mother apparently has given her… odd life advice, so if I had to take a guess, Mercedes is deliberately here, with said relative being aware.”

Lucille mulls over the words the Disembodied Man left for John; “Remember your crime.” In that case, has she resolved her guilt? Will she escape when others stay behind? If that was even possible. Entirely possible it had no meaning at all, a pointless distraction to let them wander about fruitlessly.

As the conversation turns to the monster she encountered at the pool, Lucille wonders about what to do. Does she return? Was its appearance independent of all the meddling they had done during the week? If she only had the Parting Gift back then, she wouldn’t have needed to push herself to that extent, and then…

Well, pointless thoughts. They’d figure out what to do about it, together.

She’s greatly relieved when Elise appears to not be a perfect match for the prophecy, only a likely suspect. Any hope is better than nothing in this dour hour, because they’re not exactly any closer to solving the issue at hand. And as for the matter of Gradient, or rather, Elijah, she makes a mental note to talk to her later. Perhaps Elise was right, and that she was an integral part of the prophecy.

“I’d like to see the prophecy as well,” Lucille says. “And as for the matter of whatever caused the massacre… It has the ability to liquefy things, if I understood correctly, and solidified material itself as well. When I… when I fought it, it blinded me, but I heard the sound of someone escaping—a normal person’s size, not the hulking beast it appeared to be.”

[Cheetose]

Hisa Momoi
Location: Pinefall High Dormitory - Mercedes's Room
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

"Maybe something...casual and simple?"

I shrugged slightly, knowing fully well that my suggestion went against most likely every ideal of the girl in front of me. The world of fame, money, and outside appearances was to me what the supernatural was to most humans, except that I could not really be bothered to care about it in any sense. Someone as isolated from society and poor as me mostly cared about practicality, and even if Angelica did teach me how to dress nice, my standards must have been quite a few levels below Mercedes' still. Yet, she has shown on a few occasions now that she had a more down to earth side as well...

"You look plenty good by default, so why put the emphasis on your clothes, instead of having them simply complement and emphasize your natural looks? Like some high rise jeans, with a simple shirt and sweater..."

Complimenting her looks, on the other hand, was what normally would have been much to my dislike. There was no denying that her body was way above average, even if the oversized orbs on her chest were nothing but a natural gift, and even despite the amount of make-up she decided to put on. However, she knew that too, so there was little need for me to feed her ego as well.

"Oh well. You're asking for fashion advice from someone who hasn't been to a proper clothing store in more than a decade," I shrugged again in a more emphasized manner, "Anyways, there certainly is breakfast, back at the kitchen. Never would have considered leaving without eating, especially since Pyry is coming along as well."

It was unlikely that we would see the end of his complaints until we visited the diner in case we ended up skipping brekfast now. Besides, I would have lied if I said I wasn't hungry either.

"A payphone should be easily manageable as well. Wasn't planning on lingering anywhere for too long, but there're also more places that would be worth visiting than what I can count, so we'll certainly run into one somewhere. Just make sure to pack everything you need, since in this case I'm planning on kidnapping you until well into the afternoon."

[Verg Avesta]

Prushka?
Location: Pinefall High Pool Building
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

Entering the pool building felt like stepping into a whole other world.

While the emptiness of the forest had been just that, empty, it was hardly quiet. There was wind in the trees, the distant sounds of town, the occasional car that drove by and so forth. But here, inside the building, there were no such hums. Just the doldrum hum of the few vending machines in the lobby, and the weird sensation of a large body of water that hid nearby, just outside of sight, beyond the doors leading to the actual pool.

That and the squeaking footsteps of both Prushka and Ahti as they made their way towards the stairs leading to the basement.

"........ Anyone ever tell you this place is creepy, Imp?" The boy grunted as he looked around. "Everything echoes way too loud. Where are all the furniture?"

He might have had a point there, but then again, what sort of furnite could you even put in the corridors of a building such as this? Though on the other hand, guess it fit the bill. The pool building had always been a bit of an odd thing for a school like Pinefall to have - even at its height, with all the classes full. Were things really going so well that it allowed them to have something as grand as this? Or had it been smaller in the past, and only Mr. Oceandrop's influence had made it grow?

Well, perhaps the truth would never come out.

Some truths, however, might - after all, the duo had just descended the steps they had taken, and were now standing in front of a large metal door that led into the supposed office of the school's janitor. Judging by the location and the door, this might have been a former storage that doubled as a bomb-shelter, or something to that effect - certainly not the prime location where anyone would choose to put their office. Then again, maybe Jake didn't have much choice in the matter.

In any case, Prushka reached out for the door, and---


"Is that all you have to say, dude?"


Her hand stopped as she heard a voice speak up from the other side. A voice that definitely belonged to the janitor, Jake.

And not long after, it was answered by another.

"I'm not quite sure what you want me to say. Again, I have no idea what you are talking about - so I cannot help you."

Who was that?

Wait... the voice was vaguely familiar.

..... Inacio?

"Bullcrap. I might not always do the best job as the janitor here, but that doesn't mean I don't keep an eye out for you kids," Jake continued, sounding a bit frustrated. "And I know for sure that you're up to something. Or doing something. In secret. I've seen the times you get back from the town."

Inacio snorted quietly.

"I fail to see how that correlates with me being 'up to something'. I just like to stay up late, and I sleep very little," the Lusitanian replied. "Besides, I like to take long walks. And there are few establishments in town where I can spend my nights."

This time it was Jake's turn to snort - in disbelief.

"Yeah, maybe... but then why is the light in your room on, and why is someone walking about there while you're gone?"

Just... what sort of conversation was going on there, behind that door?

---

John Dove & Alexstrasza Lockhart
Location: Pinefall High Dormitory – Souma Nubatama’s Bedroom (Room 109)
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

Souma Nubatama, as cool as a cucumber as he was, could only stare flatly at Alexstrasza's spastic entrance to the room, addressing both him and John in a familiar way before reverting to being a ball of nervousness. If either of the boys could have heard what the girl did, they would have sensed Potemkin's cackling laugh echo in the room as well - but only Alexstrasza did. Indeed, it sounded like her "other half" was well aware of what had happened, despite being far away.

Still, with a single owlish blink being a sign of Souma's confusion, the one-eyed boy let out a little sigh and gestured Alexstrasza to step into the room. Once she was in, he closed the door, and turned to look at the two that had now intruded into his inner sanctum.

"......... She really needs to learn how to lie better. That was woefully bad," Souma commented to John, before turning to look at the blonde girl and etching a slight smile on his face. "But I see. You heard about a murderer. So you came to get help from the one student here convicted of multiple murders. I suppose that makes sense. Though it makes me wonder..."

Souma glanced icily towards John.

"Was there a briefing on my past activities somewhere and I simply missed it?" He asked. "I have to admit, I would have liked to be there to listen - make sure that whoever was holding such presentation got all the facts correct."

... Was he blaming John for this?

For Alexstrasza?

"... In any event. To answer your other questions, John Dove - my amusement at the thought was because that is directly referenced in the poem at the foot of the statue. 'Escape from the umbra sea', that is. And as for the sextant, well, what direction it points is just a part of it," Souma continued. "Hiding one's eye seems to be a... heh... fashion statement in this town."

As if to mock himself, he placed his hand over the eyepatch he was wearing.

"But in this case, an old, bearded man with a single eye and a wide-brimmed hat, it brings to mind legends from somewhere far away from here - that was what I was trying to say."

He nodded, mostly to himself - and then turned back to Alexstrasza.

"Now then, Alexstrasza Lockhart... you sought me out because you thought you had found a murderer. Any more specific reasoning, other than the one I mentioned?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. "Maybe you thought of me as a Hannibal Lecter to catch your Buffalo Bill? Or, maybe...... did you think I was behind that murder?"

Souma's smirk seemed to grow.

"...... A bold thought to be sure. Amusing, too."

---

Liana Skye
Location: Spade Queen Country Club - Kitchen
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994
Weather: Overcast

Once Cathie had recovered from the coughing fit she had thanks to Liana's strange comment, the group split into two - with one heading to the kitchen while Colt went to catch up with the FBI Agent. Cathie, still wearing a rather awkward, forced-looking grin on her face, marched ahead, busying herself with looking for the actual kitchen. Sierra, on the other hand, trailed behind her, setting her stride in step with Liana.

Eventually (and with Sierra's directions) the group did find themselves in the honestly massive kitchen that matched the opulent nature of the country club to a T. Immediately Cathie grabbed one of the aprons hanging from the door and slipped it on, heading towards the large fridges and freezers that covered the far wall. She threw open the doors and started going through the contents, which turned out to be rather numerous.

This place was well-stocked enough to last a nuclear winter, from the looks of it. Just how many guests did they expect?

... More than there currently were, that's for sure.

"Awright, blueberries!" Cathie's excited voice piped up as she rummaged through the freezer. "Jackpot!"

Sierra, who had taken a seat on a stool next to the kitchen counters, watched the auburn-haired girl with a slightly confused expression.

"... She seems both annoyed and happy at the same time," the little heiress wondered. "How come? It started after we left the lobby. Though, that look on her face... is she constipated, maybe? It's like she's really holding something in."

Sometimes kids could be downright brutal.

"I can hear you, you squirt!" Cathie shot back, slamming the freezer close and sticking her tongue out to Sierra. "A-and I'm neither happy or annoyed! You're just imagining things! I mean, maybe I'm happy I got to woke up to a new day instead of just getting stuck in that n---"

Realizing that she was about to say something more than she should, the girl clamped her mouth shut. Then, after scratching her head in annoyance, she shrugged vehemently.

"A-anyways! Point is, you're just looking too deep into it! Just a normal morning for me, that's all!"

Sierra, still rather confused, tilted her head.

"I... see?" She responded... before doing a double-take. "W-wait, squirt!?"

---

Colt Davin
Location: Spade Queen Country Club - Outside
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994
Weather: Overcast

Moving out of the now-empty lobby, Colt found himself standing under an overcast sky, staring at the grounds that still bore the scars of last night's rain. Well, the rain and... something else. Almost naturally, his eyes were drawn to the metal ladder that climbed all the way up to the rooftop, and for a moment, he could have sworn he saw the jet-black figure, dressed in that black long coat of his, standing there...

... But it was just the last figments of his dream. When he blinked, he saw no one. And of course he didn't. Hawthorn had went into a whole other direction, to took care of whatever he was about to.

Still... the pain from last night that had gnawed at his brain felt all too fresh and real in his mind.

Perhaps that was why it was almost a relief to hear the familiar, almost chipper voice of a certain FBI Agent nearby.

"... And Roxie, once again I have to say - the quality of air in Road's End never ceases to amaze me. My lungs haven't felt this good since North Dakota... and we both remember what sort of fiasco that turned out to be, don't we? I suppose I'll hold onto to some fool's hope that things won't get as complicated this time, but I make no promises. Still, considering the local flora, fauna, atmosphere and friendly people..." Scottie held a pause, as if thinking something. "... I've decided to add a new bullet point to my list of retirement plans. Roxie, try to see what sort of prices the houses in this town fetch. I may have just found where to put my roots down when I hang up my badge."

Having said that, the agent who wore an apparently perpetually soft smile turned off his odd dictation machine and slipped it into his pocket. Leaning to his cane, he turned around and took a good look behind him, having apparently heard the approaching footfalls. And when he saw the boy, his smile widened a little bit as he lifted his hand in a greeting.

"Ah, Colton. I see that you are awake," Scottie greeted him almost jovially. "We were planning on letting you all sleep a little longer on account of last night's troubles, but I suppose human minds and bodies are sturdier than we think, eh?"

Scottie sniffed the air a little bit, and his eyebrow rose appraisingly.

"... Or perhaps we are about to be served a surprise breakfast? I suppose hunger is as good a motivator as any," the agent said and chuckled, before adopting a bit more serious expression. "That being said, Colton - how are you faring? Were you able to rest at all?"

Straight to the point, huh?

---

Hisa Momoi
Location: Pinefall High Dormitory - Kitchen
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

"... Like, that's the thing, you know? Hollywood as a style is all well and good and whatevah, but out there in the boonies? It's starting to feel ridiculous. Like, ain't nothing criminal with wanting to look your best. You've got your detective stuff, I've got my own hobbies - whatever makes us, like, happy and stuff, yeah? But, okay, like - even I get that walking around like I'm still in La-La Land won't work here. I gotta work with the environment too, and you definitely know more about the rural chic than I do."

Surprisingly (or perhaps not), the walk back to the kitchen with Mercedes had been accompanied by the starlet delving deeper into the topic of fashion, now that it had been brought up, and Hisa had even engaged with it. Perhaps the actress hadn't had enough outlets for gushing about this or that clothing style she adored, but she was certainly going all out now.

"Besides, no style? Girl, that's just a matter of how you present yourself. If you gotta, like, pay hand over fist to make sure you're at the cutting edge, you're doing it wrong. Those are what we call posers. No, the real deals make their own fashion from what they can find and pioneer their own brand - others follow. Yeah, like, that's good way to put it. Real fashionistas lead so that others follow," Mercedes continued as the two kept walking. "Still, tell you what. Once we're all done with this, you hit up with me and Lucy and I'll take you both on a proper tour. Caché, Red Wing, PacSun, Gadzooks... we'll find your style yet. I'm sort of thinking of something alt. Like, you ever listened to that grunge stuff? You would be able to pull off that look like nobody's business..."

Perhaps it had been a mistake to give Mercedes so much ammunition, but at the very least the actress was energetic again. She had already agreed to spent the day out in exchange for a ride, and had packed up some of her stuff into a fancy little backpack. In addition, she had actually taken some of Hisa's advice, dressing in a more casual way. Then again, even if she was wearing jeans and a swear, it wasn't nearly enough to make her look frumpy - on the contrary.

Though, speaking of fashion, somebody else seemed to have an opinion too.

"She looks just fine - great even," Pyry grunted over from the table where he was sitting. "Don't go dragging her into a make-over where she's turned into some sorta Hollywood clone of you."

The boy looked rather tired too, but the coffee he was drinking was clearly doing his job. And although his hair was kinda messed up, he still looked ready to head on out for the stuff they needed to do. Sakura, on the other hand, was busying herself with the finishing touches of the breakfast, and gave the girls a smile and a nod when they entered.

Mercedes, on the other hand, snorted when she heard Pyry's comment, and elbowed Hisa lightly on the side.

"Hear that Nancy Drew? Mr. Abs here is at the point where he's ready to sing praises for your looks no matter the situation," she said with a grin and a cackle. "Ain't that the marital bliss or whatevah?"

Pyry, in return, snorted.

"I just said what I was thinking," he replied, sagely sipping his coffee. "And in this situation, I think Hisa looks good."

That made the starlet raise a teasing eyebrow.

"Oh? What am I then, chopped liver?" The actress asked. "Like, does that mean out of everybody here, yours truly is actually the fashion bozo, even after she took advice on how to dress up from your girl?"

That made Pyry do a double-take.

"N-no, that's not what I, I just..." The boy stammered, before groaning loudly and massaging his temples as if he had a growing headache. "... Help me out here, Hisa? Please?"

---

Elise Pelltier & Lucille Faraday
Location: Avery's Diner
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

"Well, first of all..."

Samuel paused to take a sip of his drink.

"... From what I understand, that Salpinx of Woe is like a big beacon of some sort. It calls down something. Grandfather said it would call down a 'feather' of something, but what - that I don't know. I think he wrote some papers about that, but those might have been left at the old church - we should check there," the young man explained, not hesitating even for a moment to say 'us' instead of 'you'. "So. I think his plan was to call down something to help combat the calamity, which he thought to be a Named Demon. If it was Eli, then... I guess that'd make sense. But as far as I know, my grandfather never activated the Salpinx. So someone else did, seven years ago when---"

For a moment, Samuel paused. Then, a look of realization dawned upon his face and he leaned back in his chair, sinking into it as few of the puzzle pieces clicked in place for him.

"--- Remmie. It has to be. She's the one who showed up with Eli in tow out of the blue. And she loved to explore, so it might be that she found the old church and somehow got past the barriers," Samuel said quietly. "It's just a hunch. But I'm pretty confident in it. Would explain why she always seemed to know more about her than the rest of us. Maybe... well, maybe she had help from Angie too. Those two, although always at odds, did form an efficient duo when they wanted."

The fluffy-haired youth rubbed his chin, his thoughts spinning like cogs in his head.

"So does that mean that Eli is this feather...? But what even is a 'feather'? Does it have something to do with the name Remmie chose?" he continued his musings. "Man. If only we could talk with her again. But she didn't get off easy, like me. And I'm pretty sure that she's not trapped at the lighthouse either - if Tris is to be believed. And although Patricia lost her mind, she's still... sharp when it counts."

Perhaps realizing that he wasn't going to get far on this avenue alone, Samuel shook his head and leaned forward again, elbows on the table. He gazed at the two girls, weighing and thinking about the things they had told her just moments ago.

"As for the prophecy. That's easy. Unless someone's stolen it, it's still at our home - and I've been keeping an eye on the place," he explained. "Once we're done here, we can go get it. Take a good look at what it says. If not. I'm pretty sure grandfather shared the text with the Kincaid patriarch at the time. He might know, if we're out of options. Or his descendants---"

The young man was about to say more, but at that point, the sound of approaching footsteps broke the tense atmosphere, if just for a moment. Avery Walker arrived from the kitchen, carrying three trays - one for each person present at the table. The promised 'breakfast' had arrived, and from the looks of it, the diner owner had gone all out. The portions were even bigger than usual. For example, Samuel's pancakes were a veritable tower that he now looked upon with some mild dread.

"Umm..." Samuel expressed his confusion and turned to look at Avery.

However, the answer he got was just a shrug and a bright smile.

"Don't ask. For some reason, well..." Avery chuckled. "... Well, seeing you three brightened up my day a little bit. I don't even know why. Maybe it's something to be happy about, but I've just forgotten about it."

That gave the fluffy-haired youth a pause... but eventually, he responded with a soft smile as well.

"... I see. Well, that is certainly a good thing, then."

And with that, the owner left the table, telling them all to dig in and to call her if they needed seconds.

Thus, once it was clear that she was out of the hearing range, Samuel returned back to the topics at hand - all the while trying to dissassemble the mountain of pancakes in front of him.

"And as for this monster... the one from twenty-one years ago, from back when I... well, you know. And the one that you encountered, well... they definitely do sound like the same creature. Unnervingly so. But I'm not sure if that's possible. No, it should be impossible. Because... that monster who we met..." Samuel spoke, only to hesitate for a moment as dark memories were dragged from within him. "... The monster we met in the forest. The one who we fought. The one whom Remmie tried to stop, only to be... killed by, thanks to that accursed revolver."

A certain sense of silk-like steel appeared in Samuel's eyes, a sharp contrast to his otherwise soft demeanor.

"------ That was Nevada. And while he was probably older than he looked, there's no way he was alive twenty-one years ago."

He then cut out a piece of pancake and shoved it in his mouth.

"And neither... neither could he have attacked you at the pool building. After all.."

Another pause.

Just as long.

"........ After the events that broke up our group and put me in hospital, Nevada took his own life. Threw himself off the cliffs at End's Beach. And I know. I was there, in that other body of mine, down at the beach. I saw it happen."

Samuel washed the bite down with a big gulp from his soda and wiped his mouth.

"Jake... he never forgave himself for it. For not being able to talk Nevada out of it."

[Spinach]

Colt Davin
Location: Spade Queen Country Club - Outside
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994
Weather: Overcast

Staring upward, Colt felt a flash of pain. A memory of that jolt that burnt at his neurons last night, that odd headache that nearly sent him tumbling to the mud, came and went like a gust of wind. He rubbed his temple to soothe a pain that was merely imagined, then turned to the direction of a familiar voice.

The older gentleman was speaking about retirement plans into a dictation machine. Perhaps keeping such records is the key to easily organizing thoughts. Or perhaps the FBI agent was simply the forgetful type and needed to keep such records.

He could also be doing so to easily relay it all to the ‘Roxie’ that he mentioned.

But despite it all, it didn’t seem particularly important, nor to be Colt’s business. So the boy paid it no mind, and waved back at the morning greeting.

“Morning sir.” Colt tried to take a whiff of his own, to see if he could catch a hint of what was cooking. Naturally, being outside… all he could smell was petrichor and grass. Was he actually smelling anything, or just making an educated guess? From last night Colt had already surmised that the man was beyond observant. “Breakfast isn’t gonna be a surprise if you know it’s coming.”

The boy stopped in front of the man. Colt couldn’t help but to look at him slightly differently from the first time he laid eyes on him. Of course, it was given that a federal agent wouldn’t fall neatly into the package of “normality,” but the way in which Agent Ferguson opened fire on the impostor without hesitation last night…

What use was there in even trying to think about normality anymore?

“Liana and Cathie are cooking. Pancakes and some other fixings. After last night…” Colt let his voice trail off, then shrugged. “Well, I slept about as well as someone in my position could. I guess anxiety is a breeding ground for hunger though, and not just for me.”

Though he’d claimed to be a light eater, he couldn’t deny that he planned on having at least seconds this morning. Something inside of him needed to be filled, something which food wouldn’t help with, but he was going to try anyway.

“But before breakfast I wanted to talk to you. About Elizaveta Vyraj.”

Maybe this would help where the food wouldn’t.

“I guess the first thing I’d like to know before we start is,” he shifted on his feet, pondering how to phrase the question, though only pausing for a single breath. “Well, you’re investigating her death. But before I start talking about strange, nonsensical things, I’d like to know if this is Elizaveta Vyraj, the Pinefall student, or Elizaveta Vyraj, the Soviet soldier?”

Then, he rubbed his chin.

“Or are the two one and the same?”

[Airen]

Liana Skye/Hikari Sora
Location: Spade Queen Country Club - Kitchen
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994
Weather: Overcast

---It takes her a bit longer to charge over to the freezers.

While the opulent nature of the Club's kitchen was exactly what she had been seeking in a facility, the excited smile that crosses her face is still tempered a bit by the burned in procedures of the past. Hands busy themselves with her long (too long, some might say) hair, dexterous fingers pulling it together into one ponytail and then a second just beneath it; it's a bit of a rushed job of course, a bit of personal fussing that would take a mirror to really pull together the look perfectly, but...

"..."

She needed it out of the way.

It was her charm point of course, at least in her own opinion, but the princess look got in the way of quite a few things in life; eventually the double becomes a triple, the young woman chuckling to herself as she listens to the other two bicker, not quite putting in her own thoughts just yet. It's a good sign, that they can so easily go back to joking around after the nightmare that was last night, and so it is only after she's pulled up her sleeves, slipped on a clean-white apron and washed her hands with all the rigorous fervor of someone who was stepping onto a battlefield.

---That battlefield being a kitchen, where battles start long before you crack your first egg... But when she finally gets there, in front of the freezers and fridges and cabinets, well...

Coffee.

She starts off doing her best to knock out a certain pseudo-addiction of hers; it's not often that you spy a standalone siphon coffee maker in a kitchen, even rarer was finding Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee beans just ripe to be ground down as far as she could get them (you got the most caffeine that way after all) but she wasn't going to turn down the combination of a vacuum brewer and the sort of beans she hadn't been able to afford since she dropped the idol-gig-!

Still-!

"Now now, let's play nice guys."

The voice that finally comes from the young woman at the end is faintly amused, like an older sister or mother listening to the kids bicker for awhile before calmly putting a stop to it before they got too loud...

But of course, she is not quite mature enough for that to actually be the case, and indeed-!

"Being a little short is fine Sierra, you'll grow taller soon, I promise~"

The teasing smile has returned with a vengeance, the quiet professionalism she had shown while preparing herself for kitchen duty finally falling away along with the sound of a burr grinder.

"But you're not wrong I think, she's holding a few things in~"

The handle spins smoothly in her hands, the fine brown powder falling into a clear glass, even as she flicks on the bottom portion of the siphon brewer; it lights up a clear, clean orange, the water just above the bulb soaking in the irreverent rays. It's a good sight, one that declares she won't have to boil beans on this day, and indeed, the grounds falling into the container above declare this truth in the form of a rich aroma...

"Like... Wanting to say I was wrong about what I was implying in the lobby, but realizing if she does so, it'll just be obvious she's actually lying... Or uh, something like that~"

---Neither one is spared the light teasing, after all, much like Hawthorne had said...

She could be a little bit of a bully at times.

Just a little bit though, teasing was a bit too fun to not do...!

"It's just hard to express feelings sometimes is all, it feels a bit embarrassing, so you try to shield yourself a bit or do it in a roundabout way so you can deny it if it looks like it's gonna go bad and things just get... Messy..."

She chuckles, moving away from the siphon brewer and over to the cabinets and refrigerator; eggs, milk, butter, vanilla and sugar all come out onto her chosen counter without hesitation... But the young woman stops at the strawberry jam, staring at the premade processed concoction for awhile before making a disapproving (?) noise and retrieving strawberries from the freezer instead, adding lemons and lemon juice to her chosen list of products...

It's a bit extra maybe... But I like the homemade stuff...

"Not that I can really talk about that, I was a bit of a mess a few times yesterday myself... And guys are awful at noticing things sometimes, honestly, they can be totally blind."

She huffs, although the light wink at the other two girls shows she's still mostly joking around with em-!

"Asked Thorne what he wanted me to make him and he didn't give a clear answer," she sighs again although the smile doesn't fade, the water of a nearby sink clicking on as the fresh lemons are brought beneath water as hot as she could stand, vegetable brush scrubbing away the edible wax coating of the fruit, "Zero excitement. So now I have to go all out and reclaim my honor."

Strawberry jam is red, too...

Again the sound of cabinets opening and shutting, a flash of a citrus zester being placed atop a wooden board and the rhythmic motions of a lemon being drawn across it's surface; a simple enough process, so long as you don't cut all the way down to the pith, you have a perfect secret ingredient to kick up a homemade strawberry jam a notch-! Of course it takes a bit more effort than your average form of french toast, the stuffed bread aspect of what she was planning was entirely extra, mostly motivated by Colt making it clear he liked fruits...

It was a good idea.

A bit of a contrast to what she was sure were going to be spectacularly sweet pancakes from Cathie, a bit of a more natural sweetness rather than one gained entirely through syrup, of course she'd make a normal batch of them too, no way of knowing if anyone was allergic to strawberries, so best not to put all her eggs in a single basket.

Better they go in the pan, soft and fluffy and delicious.

Eggs and jam and coffee first.

French Toast second.

And bacon last, since, in her experience, everyone wanted it almost right off of the stove-top... And she could actually use a kitchen blowtorch to make Scottie's bacon, which, well...

He'd probably think that's funny.

"Still, glad to hear it feels like a normal morning for you guys. That makes me feel a bit better."

Screwed up a bit more than I would have liked last night after all...

"Good to embrace the new day as a new day, but... Hmmm... What to talk about...? Gossip maybe?"

Moving back over to the siphon, the young woman slowly adjusts the heat of the bulb...

"Yeah, that'd work..."

She chuckles.

"What do you two know about Zane? Think he's the most mysterious of our little crew now, right? At least to me."

---Although in this, her aim isn't entirely for conversation, no...

She wants the morning to stay positive, but...

Sometimes you gotta slip work in somewhere...

"Kinda young for a handyman."

People that make time puns at me don't get to pretend they don't have a time machine.

I know the codes.

[Kuroyuki]

Vier Wolff
Location: Spade Queen Country Club - Outside
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994
Weather: Overcast

I continued my sweep as Fyrtio stared at me. I analyzed likely avenues of attack. Fyrtio was staring. I examined possible trap locations. Fyrtio was staring. I considered defensive positions. Fyrtio was staring. I walked away from her view. Fyrtio was still staring. No exchanges of words, a gesture, or anything. Just two strangers passing by.

My sweep became easier as I left Fyrtio’s position. There were no distractions. No worries. Just autonomous categorization, planning, and examination of the area. Eventually, it led me to another garage that seemed to belong to the owner of the Spade Queen Country Club. Judging from the lack of tracks or disturbances in the surrounding area, the car hasn’t been used recently. In that case, I can use it for a contingency plan.

With that thought in mind, I started heading towards the owner’s personal garage in order to prepare another escape vehicle. Everything was the serene, quiet that I was expecting until a loud squawk broke it. I turned my head automatically towards the noise and unhesitantly aimed at the source. It was a raven. I stared at the raven intently before deciding that it was probably not a threat. With that in mind, I lowered my weapon and continued on my way towards the owner’s garage.

[Frantic Author]

John Dove & Alexstrasza Lockhart
Location: Pinefall High Dormitory – Souma Nubatama’s Bedroom (Room 109)
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

Sh-shut up Potemkin! Idiot! Stupid! Moron! Go play card games with Cesarina or something, this is totally part of my plan! Your meagre mockery won't deter me from path!

I entered Souma's spartan room, peering around with a vague amount of interest as Souma began to speak, and a slow, encroaching sensation of horror broiled in my gut. H-How had he already uncovered my deception!? Souma was truly a monster to be respected; the web of secrets that I had woven was surely too elaborate for the average person to uncover my half-truths. I nodded emphatically at his query if I had arrived to find another person who had killed before, giving him a thumbs up and a wink.

The monster turned his suspicions to John, accusing him of something that I was unsure of. Perhaps revealing his true nature? Kufufu. Unfortunately, Souma, the person who told me about your activities was none other then yourself! No other person besides you and I had known these facts about the two of us - a shared 'mutual understanding' that only monsters can reach.

"Are you, perhaps blaming Mister Dove for my knowledge of you?" I said with a frown, waggling my finger in the air. "I will have you know that it... it... it came to me in a dream! Yes! A dream that was all too similar, yet slightly different then our current reality! Perhaps, in a way, you could call my dreams prophetic? In this dream, you informed me that you were an eater of men, dangerously true to your nature, and I was of course, naturally inclined to believe it!"

I closed my eyes with a sage smile. This was an almost undeniable defense. The power of dreams was known to all, after all.

"Behind the murder?" I said, frowning at Souma as I tilted my head to the side, tapping my cheek. "But why would you murder our classmates, who have yet to show you any ill will? I simply came here to ask for your assistance, as one monster to another. I have found myself to have been having... Poor success in stalking and lurking as of late. You are one of the best stalkers and lurkers that I could think of to find a murderer!"

[Daneel Rush]

Location: Pinefall High Dormitory – Souma Nubatama’s Bedroom (Room 109)
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast



Last night was even harder than I thought. Otherwise why would I feel this tired this early in the morning?

It cannot possibly be because of these two bozos in front of him, of course not.

Alexandra—

Alexstrasza.

…fine, Alexstrasza Lockhart exploded into the room—not literally, for good or ill—, bathing these two losers with her shameless presence like a second sun. Just as promptly, she put her foot in her mouth. Souma interpreted her words in an utterly unfavorable way in the current circumstances. It is almost amazing how, despite talking to each other, they are in fact having two parallel monologues that allow them to be both right and thoroughly wrong at the same time. It is impressive in all the wrong ways. How hopeless can these people be?

These are the “friends” you have chosen, John Dove. Isn’t it wonderful, “friendship”?

Normally, John would not care in the slightest for Souma’s scorn. These are not normal circumstances, however, and the current John Dove cannot afford to be on the bad side of Souma Nubatama. Thus, John Dove finds himself in the bothersome need to defend his good name. To the boy who has spent almost ten years uncaring of other people’s thoughts and opinions, this is a hassle of a change of pace.

“For all my word amounts to, I will nonetheless declare that I have not spoken of what may or may not have happened in your past with anybody else, and certainly not with Alexstrasza.”

Thinking back on it, there is always the possibility that Potemkin was reading Souma’s profile over his shoulder, but if that was the case, he clearly was not in a state of mind to notice.

“Souma, let me make myself thoroughly clear here: I don’t care in the slightest about whoever you may or may not have hurt or killed who cares how many years ago. I care about the people who are dying and disappearing right here, right now. I care about not becoming one of them, and about you two not becoming one of them.”

Then he turns towards the sorceress.

“Alexstrasza, you cannot compound on a lie with another lie; that only makes both lies all the more brittle,” says the practiced liar. “I honestly did not intend to go over this matter with Souma, because it did not seem truly necessary, but we might as well. Could be better in the long term for all I know. So, let’s move on like this.”

After taking a moment to reorganize his thoughts, John redoubles his efforts to direct the conversation.

“Firstly, I, too, am glad to see you are well, Alexstrasza, and it is relieving to know Miss Feroce is safe as well.”

Back to looking at Souma.

“Alexstrasza and I woke up this Wednesday morning with a complete set of memories encompassing this entire week, all the way until the moment of our respective deaths, hers tonight and mine tomorrow evening. As it turns out, around ten or our classmates also share this memory of a different iteration of this week. In that version of this week, the three of us met in the Ghostwood on Friday evening, along with Miss Subaru Iburi. You told us you encountered a suspicious figure in the forest on the day we arrived to this school, and that this figure appeared to be hostile towards Pinefall’s students. I am not clear on the details, but Alexstrasza and you seemed to be working together in pursuing this figure.”

He gestures towards the girl.

“I presume she desires to resume those efforts, whatever preconceptions she has about you notwithstanding.”

With that “clarified”, John turns towards Alexstrasza.

“On another note, Alexstrasza, you just said that the Disembodied Man has already claimed a life. Perhaps we are to assume this is the fate of Gabi Bakhauv. Naturally, we should not take such words at face value without evidence, but I think there is value in the fact that the Disembodied Man wants us to make that conclusion.”

John glances down at his left hand, closed into a fist resting on his knee.

“We can never forget that the Disembodied Man is definitely not some sort of apparition or supernatural force, no matter how much it might want to make us think that. It is definitely a person, one of flesh and bone. Someone in our midst.”

Back to Souma.

“And now you are relating that statue to Odin of all people. There are already too many references to the one-eyed god in this town in the middle of nowhere; I guess I cannot ignore them anymore.”

Somebody out there seems to really like Odin. And John really should check Miss Hartley’s book about that statue.

“Well, investigating the statue sounds like a plan for later today. Now, from what I’ve learned so far, and considering that Gabi Bakhauv was missing since yesterday, it is likely that, if he was targeted by the Disembodied Man, then it happened on Thursday night. If you intend to pursue that line of thought, you need to narrow the time, learn where the attack took place, and from there deduce who had the opportunity to attack in that place at that time. For example, Ubon and I are each other’s alibi for Thursday night, and we can provide an alibi for Inacio for a portion of that night.”

After hesitating for a moment, John adds to his thoughts.

“You might want to ask Prushka, who I believe is also investigating this matter. To narrow down the time of his disappearance, you have to find the last person who saw him, perhaps asking the people towards whom he gravitated, like Anna Vandemeel or Elaine Winters. Souma, you said you met him at the overlook. When was this, and would you happen to know if he visited the overlook on other days?”

He sighs.

“Furthermore, we have to consider that the Disembodied Man may either be one of our classmates, or somebody who has replaced one of our classmates from the very start. In which case, it may very well be possible that it can assume the guise of different people once it feels confident enough to create a believable disguise. We are probably looking for someone who does not keep to themselves; somebody who interacts openly with us. The problem with that is…”

…that any suspicious changes in behavior in the past few days may be attributed to those who are going through the loop.

Again, he regards Souma.

“Souma, you told me that our classmates have behaved oddly. Did you have anybody in particular in mind when you said that? Someone whose…’interesting’ changes in behavior caught your attention the most?”

[Bloble]

Prushka?
Location: Pinefall High Pool Building
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

"........ Anyone ever tell you this place is creepy, Imp? Everything echoes way too loud. Where are all the furniture?"

"You'd be the first, Scrooge. But now that you mention it..."

Our squeaky footsteps echo loudly through the building. To Ahti's keen hearing it must be even worse. I glance up the ceiling, far, far above us. The halls are cold and empty.

"Maybe they put in a secret base here! One that opens up right where the pool is, and then a Batmobile or a Zord or something comes out."

That's enough silliness now. Even though Oceandrop would totally do it.

"Or... maybe there's a serial killer right beneath us." My voice drops low. Becomes foreboding. "Step, step, step. He hears every one of our footsteps, because the building is designed to carry sound perfectly. He knows who and where we are, and when he senses that there's someone here, alone and vulnerable, he emerges from a secret entrance to claim another victim-!"

Wait.

"Um. That was supposed to be a joke... but with all the weirdness going on here, it actually sounds plausible now that I think about it..."

All these conspiracy theories have rattled my mind. I'm seeing shadows in every corner now, sinister explanations for every bit of weirdness. Or maybe it was always like that. Maybe that's what it really means to be part of the Turnside. Maybe it means having that lingering certainty in the back of your mind that people are right to fear the dark and the unknown. Maybe it means recognizing that there are shadows in some of those corners. Those stories sometimes are real. And there is a monster under your bed. So why wouldn't there be a secret lab or hideout in a slightly weirdly-designed pool building?

Oh, this sucks. Maybe it'd be better for it all to have been the product of an overactive imagination, like the teachers said.

"W-well, we can look at it later."

We rush past the uncomfortably open area, and descend a strange staircase to a metal door. This is Jake's office? A repurposed bomb shelter or something? Or is it just the entrance to this secret facility?

Before I can open the door and ask...

"Is that all you have to say, dude?"

Well. Jake's definitely here. And so is... Inacio? How'd someone that calm and friendly get Jake angry at him?

As we stand there, transfixed, the exchange becomes heated, accusations and questions tossed back and forth. The thick metal door does nothing to keep the noise away, and it oozes into the empty, echoing building, not quite making it up the long staircase.

Until a surprising question is levied, and I remember.

"...we also learned that Inacio has been sneaking out to the hotel to meet with someone. He has this modern radio receiver there that’s...connected to some weird channel that is just looping this unnerving song.”

“I’m...not sure what he is up to, but he is doing something behind everyone’s back, that seems apparent. I took a peek into his room too this morning, just out of curiosity, and there was some similarly green haired girl sleeping in his bed. Quite a mystery, really.”

"Though... oh! Yeah! I saw some Tarot cards in Inacchie's sports bag!"

"...Scrooge, I have a plan."

From the other side of the door, to the two men in the office, something can be heard that interrupts the conversation. An indistinct voice from the stairwell. And a series of passionate whispers.

"...yeah, we're doing it. Right here. Right now."

"...hat stays on. And put that back in your pants."

"...what, embarrassed? Come on, we did worse in the hospital."

"...not too rough... there."

The doorknob twists from the other side. With a creak, the door shudders and moves an inch and stops. Then there is a pregnant pause. The sound of clothing rustling against clothing. And then...

Step. Step. Step.

...

...

...

BAM!

The door flies open with the force of my kick. And on the other side...

"BRIGGS! LEAVE INACCHIE'S GIRLFRIEND ALONE!"

"YOU'RE NOT A REAL BASS BRO IF YOU DON'T LET A GUY SNEAK OUT FOR ROMANTIC LATE NIGHT DATES!"

[Katie]

Lucille Faraday
Location: Avery's Diner
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

Lucille does not bother mentioning the obvious—that Elijah is well known for preaching the truth of the Lord over the false deity Baal. She takes a quick glance at Elise, wondering if the girl’s expression would reveal the feelings underneath. Surely her demon knows now, and what did this mean for Gradient, or rather, Elijah’s safety? Naturally, she does not want to be wary of Elise, but…

Demons are still demons, even if they provide aid.

Lucille picks at her food. It’s delicious, without a doubt, but she is still nervous and stressed about the future would hold. Her appetite is a victim of her mood. She mechanically shoves it into her mouth as she listens to Samuel talk about Nevada, Remmie’s death, and Jake’s pain.

She feels awful for the janitor of Pinefall now, because she can easily sympathize with that pain. The nagging thought that you could have done something different, even if you did not know. Especially if you did not know.

But above all else, there is one problem she finds with Samuel’s words.

“It doesn’t necessarily have to be the same person. Even if it is, there are other explanations. Necromancy, perhaps. But it’s also possible the ability is hereditary, or a taught technique.” Lucille is hardly versed in the specific trappings of the other members of the Turnside, but she does not believe there is a contradiction with what Samuel saw and what she experienced. The simplest explanation is often the closest to being correct.

Having said her piece, Lucille turns back to her food.

Why in the world does everyone end up giving her such excessive portions?

[Mormarth]

Elaine Winters
Location: Pinefall High Dormitory - Elaine's Room
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

I stared at him for a moment, expression flat.

Wish I had a camera.

"W-well, I uh, hm, I guess we should go bother the Ex-Coma Patient they dug out of the hospital, they're acquainted, so maybe he might know where to dig for some smelly guy like him. Other than that, uhhh..."

I did not always like saying I had nothing in the way of options...

"Well, honestly I got nothing. Very annoying to just show up and be annoying and then run off when I look away. Coward."

I grumbled irritably, trying to school my expression out of the sulky scowl it had dropped into. I could yell at a certain other person for doing that, but I'll be nice and not bully him about doing silly things.

But he will not escape me forever, no matter how dreamy he looked!

"Honestly, fever dream is a pretty accurate wording for this situation. There was that whole situation with Oceandrop yesterday that..."

I frowned, "It's probably better that I get it all out at once, I feel, it's a lot to unpack."

I fussed with my hair a bit more, deeming it ultimately satisfactory, and then shrugged on my usual jacket, the scent having, in the absence of rain shifted to something more tolerable than brimstone.

A good sense of smell, not always a blessing.

"There's also hitting up the Coastarises, see if Sword and Scowls is alright after we beat him around the head, check on Subaru, then maybe drop by the Lighthouse and see if that ghost guy is still around; Not your ghost guy, this one's shorter, mouthy, dressed like a sailor, mormon fella."

I frowned, "He said he'd do his part to help out, but I didn't see him last night, he stuck his neck out, so may as well follow up with him. An' he said some interestin' stuff about the Chevron Lodge and some other stuff I've heard about, but like I said, breakfast will probably get my brains moving. Need a lot of oomph for a brain this big, you know."

May as well get going, knowing my luck, people've already scattered about.

[Thalraxal]

Elise Pelltier & Lucille Faraday
Location: Avery's Diner
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

"... From what I understand, that Salpinx of Woe is like a big beacon of some sort. It calls down something. Grandfather said it would call down a 'feather' of something, but what - that I don't know. I think he wrote some papers about that, but those might have been left at the old church - we should check there. So. I think his plan was to call down something to help combat the calamity, which he thought to be a Named Demon. If it was Eli, then... I guess that'd make sense. But as far as I know, my grandfather never activated the Salpinx. So someone else did, seven years ago when---"

"--- Remmie. It has to be. She's the one who showed up with Eli in tow out of the blue. And she loved to explore, so it might be that she found the old church and somehow got past the barriers. It's just a hunch. But I'm pretty confident in it. Would explain why she always seemed to know more about her than the rest of us. Maybe... well, maybe she had help from Angie too. Those two, although always at odds, did form an efficient duo when they wanted."

"So does that mean that Eli is this feather...? But what even is a 'feather'? Does it have something to do with the name Remmie chose? Man. If only we could talk with her again. But she didn't get off easy, like me. And I'm pretty sure that she's not trapped at the lighthouse either - if Tris is to be believed. And although Patricia lost her mind, she's still... sharp when it counts."

"Our friend Subaru is attuned to the spirits and can perceive ghosts. She's also spent a lot of time guarding the lighthouse because of the soul beacon there. I asked her if she'd seen Remmie at the lighthouse too, and she said she hadn't either. I don't know how much a spirit here can resist the pull of the lighthouse, but I wondered if she might have ended up somewhere she had a strong attachment to? I thought maybe the Ghostwood Overlook, since that's where she is on the cover of her book, but I admit that's just a wild guess."

She paused as she took a moment to consider the fate of Tris, Patricia, eh?

"I was going to ask about Tristellia Sem Zoirvit. Was she another classmate of yours? I'm-I'm sorry to hear that's what happened to her. Although, I have to admit, that underground world of hers is fascinating. It's a mish-mash of so many different literary and occult sources. I would love to talk to her more at length about it- if-if that's a healthy for thing for her to do?" asked Elise, "Speaking of Tris though, she mentioned something about you, as U-Salem, investigating what she described as "The House of Ultimate Evil"? Do you know what she meant by that?"

"As for Elijah... Hisa had a chance to find the old church ruins and looked around there. I think she was curious about learning more about Gradient's origins too. She'd mentioned to me earlier that she'd heard that Gradient used to spend a lot of time by the old church ruins with Remmie. Hisa apparently managed to get by the barrier in the cellar and found your grandfather's notes, and we'd both assumed that he'd been the one who used the Salpinx to summon Elijah as part of his preparations to fight Gaap. I never would've imagined it was two of your old classmates who'd have summoned her instead. I wonder why? Was it just to see what they could do with the Salpinx?"

Just two ordinary high school students, messing around with an ancient artifact that was foretold in the Book of Revelations, like you do, thought Elise, Can't say I blame them, if I was in their position, I'd be sorely tempted to do the same.

Elise frowned as she thought back to her conversation with Hisa, taking shelter from the rain under the eves of Pinefall High's Main Building. There was something else in the old church's cellar that both she and Hisa felt seemed out of place for a ruined church.

"Hisa also mentioned that there was a whole pile of advanced looking future-tech stuff around the place too. Like something out of an AMADEUS lab or something there. Was that your stuff your family had on hand, Samuel, or was that something Remmie and Ange brought in then?" asked Elise.

If this Ange can acquire a marshmallow man costume for Samuel's soul to inhabit, future tech doesn't seem that far out.

"Anyway, Hisa said that according to the notes, the Salpinx summoned a manifestation of the Wheel, a cocoon which creates a body for one of the Feathers of the Wheel. Would that mean she's related to the Ophanim, perhaps?"

"The other thought I had when I learned about the Salpinx of Woe... In the Book of Revelations, its used to call an angel who has the key to the Bottomless Pit. That got me thinking about bottomless pits. An actual bottomless pit would be impossible to construct, but you could simulate one by linking the bottom of the pit to the top of the pit so you can fall endlessly. You reach the bottom of the pit, and then you loop back to the top. Which in turn got me wondering how is a bottomless pit not like a time loop? We're repeating the same five days. We reach the bottom, we go back to the top, and keep falling," mused Elise, "Of course, I can't imagine Gradient as a gaoler, but I can't help but wonder if there's a connection there."

"As for the prophecy. That's easy. Unless someone's stolen it, it's still at our home - and I've been keeping an eye on the place. Once we're done here, we can go get it. Take a good look at what it says. If not. I'm pretty sure grandfather shared the text with the Kincaid patriarch at the time. He might know, if we're out of options. Or his descendants---"

Avery arrived with their food, interrupting Samuel.

Knowing my luck, it's going to end up that someone's stolen the copy of the prophecy from the Lowgate's home.

Elise stared hungrily at the food on her plate, and the very generous serving bacons and eggs, and looked up at Avery with a very grateful smile.

"Thank you very much, Mrs. Walker!"

With that, Elise hastily dug into her breakfast.

“And as for the matter of whatever caused the massacre… It has the ability to liquefy things, if I understood correctly, and solidified material itself as well. When I… when I fought it, it blinded me, but I heard the sound of someone escaping—a normal person’s size, not the hulking beast it appeared to be.”

"And as for this monster... the one from twenty-one years ago, from back when I... well, you know. And the one that you encountered, well... they definitely do sound like the same creature. Unnervingly so. But I'm not sure if that's possible. No, it should be impossible. Because... that monster who we met... The monster we met in the forest. The one who we fought. The one whom Remmie tried to stop, only to be... killed by, thanks to that accursed revolver."

"------ That was Nevada. And while he was probably older than he looked, there's no way he was alive twenty-one years ago."

"And neither... neither could he have attacked you at the pool building. After all.."

"........ After the events that broke up our group and put me in hospital, Nevada took his own life. Threw himself off the cliffs at End's Beach. And I know. I was there, in that other body of mine, down at the beach. I saw it happen."

“It doesn’t necessarily have to be the same person. Even if it is, there are other explanations. Necromancy, perhaps. But it’s also possible the ability is hereditary, or a taught technique.”

Elise felt a wrenching pain in her heart as Samuel described the details of the monster he and his classmates had encountered in the forest on that terrible day. Of the fate of Nevada, Remmie, and Samuel.

So the 'monster' they encountered that day had been one of their classmates, and it was Remmie who fired the cursed bullet that hit Samuel?

"I'm so sorry, Samuel."

She idly poked one of her eggs with her fork and watched the yolk bleed out as she thought about Jake and his inability to save Nevada. The image of Hisa holding her own knife to her throat returned to her mind and she briefly wondered what she would've done if her return hadn't startled her out of completing the act.

I'm so sorry, Jake.

She pushed her wounded egg over towards her toast as she further contemplated that terrible last day of Pinefall's Last Class.

I wonder what drove Nevada to turn on his fellow classmates like that? I guess it's not entirely unlike what happened to our class last Sunday. If time can repeat, why not history?

"Still... if Lucille heard the sounds of a normal-sized person's footfalls escaping... it sounds like the monster is actually something like a shell, or a suit, or armour, perhaps? Something that's been passed down from tragedy to tragedy, which is why it keeps on showing up? I wonder how far back it goes?" speculated Elise, "Hisa said that the monster was an Esper too, and because of that it really bothered her that it seemed to have two different powersets unrelated to each other, that power to liquify things, and monstrous strength. I thought that maybe both were a manifestation of the same power, that the monster would break its victims down into liquified flesh and bone and use those materials in turn to strengthen itself, but if the form we see is some sort of suit, rather than an extension of the pilot's power, that would also resolve that conundrum."

Elise frowned to herself as she considered the further implications of the monster being a secret identity.

"If that's the case, I wonder who our generation's 'pilot' is then? It could be almost anyone, it could even be one of our classmates, although we know it has to be an Esper. I can't imagine it being any of the Espers I know of though. Not only does it seem entirely unlike them, but we also know where they all were last Sunday when the monster was around..."

Vier, Hisa, and Prushka. Are there any other Espers in our class that I don't know about? That's entirely possible, I suppose. It's not like we all don't have secrets.

[Cheetose]

Hisa Momoi
Location: Pinefall High Dormitory - Kitchen
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

The walk to the kitchen, despite how short it was, rather mind-boggling. Once more, it must have been like what it was for an ordinary human to get a lecture about the supernatural. Was this all common knowledge for the normal people of society? None of the names she mentioned made any sense to me - I couldn't even tell if they were supposed to be a brand, or a style, or the name of some shop. Maybe some codename? Yet, the best course of action was to nod enthusiastically and in agreement to hide the embarrassing trurth. That is, until she asked something that would have been rather hard to answer with a simple yes or no, but at the same time, I still had no idea what this "grunge stuff" was. Other than it was music - or at least I hoped that you could not listen to fashion.

"I...I love music, and I listen to anything whenever I get the chance, though...I'm not too familiar with most genres as a whole."

Was it even necessary to know them to enjoy music for what it was?

Of course, the whole issue with all of this wasn't even that I had not the slighest clue about anything Mercedes talked about. Rather, that just like she said, it needed us to be "all done with this". Which, I feel, was going to be much more difficult than what she made it sound like...But then, I didn't want to ruin her optimism. Especially since the discussion was interrupted by another voice as we stepped into the kitchen, and it didn't take long to find the source either. Except that, rather than putting an end to the slightly embarrassing situation, he just made it a whole lot worse in a different sense as he engaged in a discussion with Mercedes that never should have taken place to begin with.

Inevitably, my eyebrows disappeared under my hairline rather quickly as I could feel my face flush just slightly.

Did he seriously just have to compliment me in such an offhand manner, as if it was the most natural and obvious thing to do here?

What was I supposed to say to this, even, and why was he expecting me to get him out of this?

"I---it's all just subjective anyways, and...some things need not to be said to be aknowledged..."

It didn't take too long for me to completely lose track of what weak explanation I came up with. In the first place, this discussion was something that I shouldn't have had to partake in the first place. What did they want to hear anyways? For me to confirm that I looked good? To say that Mercedes looked good? To tell Pyry to tell Mercedes that she looked good? Everything felt wrong for one reason or another.

"More importantly, how is breakfast coming along, Sakura?" I attempted to change the topic abruptly as my eyes wandered towards the girl at the counter, "Do you need some help? Did the other two not show up yet?"

Reminded of something, my head turns towards Pyry.

"What about Ru?"

[Verg Avesta]

Colt Davin
Location: Spade Queen Country Club - Outside
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994
Weather: Overcast

Ferguson, upon hearing this question, smiled in an enigmatic way and leaned onto his cane. He lifted his gaze to the skies, towards the grey blanket of clouds that simply spread as far as the eye could see and for a moment, it was almost as if he was looking at something beyond it - even though it was impossible. After all, the clouds were blocking his view of the moon, and even if they hadn't, it wouldn't have been up in the sky right now, would it?

Yet, it almost felt like the man was gazing at that exact thing - the celestial companion of Earth that remained unseen at this time.

"You know, I've been asking myself that question ever since yesterday morning... and after last night's events, I may have come to a conclusion of sorts," Scottie replied. "You see, while the question whether or not Elizaveta Vyraj is just a teenage girl who met a tragic end, or perhaps somehow ageless cosmonaut from the 60's... it might be of interest to me, to us, but that might not be the case for everyone. For you see my boy, even if we do care about that question..."

His eyes finally left the clouds behind and turned to look at Colt once more.

"--- I'm starting to believe that the killer did not."

Wait, what?

"We spent time wrestling with this very discussion last night, didn't we? Whether or not there was an unknown person with us, if the culprit was such imaginary being our paranoia dreamt up, or if it was one of us... and that made me think. In a town where such questions can be asked with a straight face, who's to say this is the only time they have been?" The agent continued. "In other words, what matters is not if we believe it, but if the killer believed them to be the same person. Because killing a teenage girl whose records are very scarce is a whole different thing from killing a cosmonaut who has somehow stayed unaging for decades after they disappeared."

He tapped his cane against the ground.

"But the most important aspect here, as also displayed by last night and our current confusion regarding it... is the whydunit. Why would someone kill Elizaveta Vyraj? Psychotic rage? Revenge? A mere whim of a lunatic? No... I'm quite sure that's not the case. The way they had strangled her, it was almost... clinical. Clean. Like a person doing their work. And that would mean there was some definite reason for her death. Perhaps Elizaveta knew something they could not allow her to say. Perhaps they wanted to remove her from Road's End because her presence hindered them? Road's End with Elizaveta Vyraj stopped them from doing something that Road's End without Elizaveta Vyraj did not," Scottie mused, half to himself, half to Colt. "And then there's the letter 'B' that Elizaveta had carved into her thigh. It's... odd. Maybe she did not have enough time to write more, but somehow I doubt that. There wasn't even an attempt at her having done so. Instead, it's almost as if she thought that this letter 'B' would be enough to point out her killer."

Ferguson paused, as if slightly unsure whether or not he should say the next thing... yet after giving it some thought, he eventually did.

"... And then there's one last observation I made at the morgue, but what I can't confirm without proper autopsy by one of our bureau members. The marks on her throat, left by when she had been strangled..." He rubbed his chin. "... They were thin. Thin hands. In other words, it's possible that her killer was a woman or a young girl... or someone else with rather slender hands."

---

Liana Skye/Hikari Sora
Location: Spade Queen Country Club - Kitchen
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994
Weather: Overcast

While Cathie had started to look like she wanted to batter Liana with the frozen blueberries she had found, eventually the girl was able to calm herself down, especially since the conversation topic had shifted onto new, less embarrassing tracks. Though it was rather amusing to notice that instead of getting flustered or flushed on her cheeks, Cathie's particular brand of embarrassment included an awkward grin that grew and grew until it was about to break her face - like she was trying very hard to look like nothing bothered her, despite the fact that it did.

Still, with Liana having guided the boat of dialogue out of dangerous waters (and with Sierra now bouncing between the two girls to look at them cook, eye full of curiosity), the auburn-haired heiress of the local diner put a finger to her chin and hummed quietly, thinking of the question that Liana had just asked.

That is, the question regarding the local handyman.

"Zane, huh...?" Cathie wondered. "I dunno. I mean, he's nice? Even if he likes to be all stand-offish and stuff. Really protective of that little brother of his, too... though I guess it makes sense. I mean, I was just a kid when it happened, but I heard later stories about what happened to their parents and uh..."

Cathie shot a rather awkward look towards Sierra and then to Liana, as if trying to wordlessly tell the latter that the faith of the Mitchell's parents wasn't something that should be discussed in front of the younger girl. Sierra, on the other hand, looked just slightly confused.

"A-anyways, yeah. As you can probably imagine, that kinda changed everything for them. Zane started working all the jobs he could find around town despite being, like, thirteen. Not much he could do, but he swore that he'd take care of them both so they wouldn't have to be separated and sent to an orphanage or something... and I guess the town kinda protected them as a whole? It's not easy life they're living, but they're making do... even if I sometimes feel Zane's completely sacrificed his own life to give his brother a chance for one," Cathie explained. "Nowadays there's probably no place at Road's End where you can't bump into Zane, working on this or that for whatever pay he can get. Which is sorta funny, since before everything that went down, I didn't even really know that Zane existed. Never saw him or talked to him. Heck, the first time I heard of him was when he crashed that car against a tree not too far from here. Guess he thought that if he could drive he'd be able to earn more money - y'know, the type of stupid logic a thirteen year old would have. Then again, when you're that young, 5 years is decades of difference in age, yeah? Not surprising we didn't run in the same circles."

Cathie chuckled a bit as she started working on the fluffiest pancakes the Pacific Northwest had probably seen... or so it felt at least, watching her put all her training to good use.

"Still, you say that Zane's mysterous, but that's just how he sorta is? I don't think he means anything bad by it," Cathie concluded. "After the brothers were on their own, he just kinda... started shutting people off. Was a pretty stoic and solemn teen too. Never played with anyone, hung out with anyone, got into trouble with people his age... he just kept to himself, always reading some ridiculously difficult books or working in that garage of his if he had some off time. So while I can't really say what goes on in his head, I don't think he's a bad guy, y'know."

The last words were accompanied by a slight frown towards Liana, as if to scold her for implying such.

---

Vier Wolff
Location: Spade Queen Country Club - Outside
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994
Weather: Overcast

As Vier arrived to the garage, she came to notice a few obvious things.

First off, it seemed that the shutter that locked up a major part of the garage was - as expected - electrical and wouldn't open up unless she had the remote or got an access to the switch inside. Another thing she immediately noticed was that the side door leading inside was - again as expected - locked. With a rather impressive lock one might add. It wasn't high-tech enough to raise any alarm bells inside Vier's head, but it did make it quite clear that the car inside was probably something that had cost quite the fortune. Maybe even some classic American sports car, judging by the tire tracks.

Another thing of note that Vier noticed on the side door of the garage, or rather, the wall next to it, was that someone had spray-painted a graffiti next to it, and though it had been tried to clean away vigorously (most likely by Zane), most of it could be still be seen in a faded colour against the metal wall. What it seemed to depict was... what was that? A dog? Wolf? Coyote? Well, whatever it was, it had a set of cartoonishly big fangs. In fact, the whole picture was rather cartoonish. Local teens, then?

"........... Caw."

As if to comment on her musings, the raven atop the roof of the garage let out a noise, tilting its head as it gazed down at the girl.

... Well, at least the animal was keeping her company.

---

John Dove & Alexstrasza Lockhart
Location: Pinefall High Dormitory – Souma Nubatama’s Bedroom (Room 109)
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

With the torrent of lies, explanations to counter those lies and questions that followed, built on those explanations that must have sounded fantastical, if not insane, to the ears of the common man, Souma Nubatama took it all in with a stoic face. After listen to everything the two people in his room had to say, the one-eyed boy raised his hand, palm facing front, as if telling the duo to wait for a moment. Then he made his way to his desk, sat down in his chair and opened the second, middle drawer.

There were three things inside that drawer. An ashtray. A carton of Lucky Bastard cigarettes. And a well-worn Zippo lighter.

In complete silence, Souma Nubatama lit himself up a cigarette and proceeded to flick the ashes to the tray, slowly massaging his temples with his other hand as he did.

Then, after what must have been a pure minute of silence, he finally turned around in the chair, leaned forward against the tall back of the chair, and looked at John and Alexstrasza.

"........ Heh. So that's how you view it."

He said, a slight smirk on his face.

"... I read in Dr. Min's paper that dyschronometria and sense of looping time could be a part of it. I was wondering if that would come into play. If I would experience it myself. But alas, I have not - unlike you. Though, listening to what you say, and the information you both speak..... I'm starting to think that this can't be explained away with just that. Then again, maybe I'm just having a different strain from you, and you lot are able to keep vague memories of your deluded previous week," Souma mused, gently smoking his cigarette. "... But that would make for a boring answer, wouldn't it? Yes... then. I suppose I shall believe you. For now. If only because it's far more interesting to believe you about all of this. Let me follow this theory then, and build upon it. So..."

That smirk turned into a silk-like grin, befitting a King Cobra basking in the sun of something that made it curious, licking the air with its tongue as it sensed something that might dull the existential agony it lived in, each and every day.

The one-eyed boy then took a moment to stretch his arms and crack his knuckles, as if settling down to do some writing work... or perhaps to brainstorm.

That amber eye was gleaming.

"----- So. A good portion of our classmates have mentally jumped back in time. You have also been dealing with a killer using the moniker of 'Disembodied Man'. Funny, in a way. My 'encounter' - if you could call it that - was a bit different. I was out in the woods, getting a feel for the place on the day we arrived. There, I ended up stumbling upon this... clearing of sorts. Dead grass everywhere. Like something had died there. There, I saw a silhouette against the growing night... like a hooded figure or a human shape of black against black. They warned me about some sort of incoming tragedy that would befall Pinefall. I suppose that might be this situation, then," Souma explained. "As for the murderer itself... this 'Disembodied Man', I agree with John. Murderers are flesh and blood. Stuff of reality. Killers are a different thing, but a murderer? That is something only a human can be. After all, only a human may murder another human - if there are other factors involved, it ceases to be a murder and turns into something more base, more inane."

Souma smacked his lips.

"I also agree with his suggestion of narrowing the time frame. I did run into Gabi the last time last Thursday evening - very late, I might add. He was in the process of packing up, intending on spending a night at the Overlook... and also looking for a partner who might want to join him. I declined since I had other matters to attend, but, hm..." Souma pondered for a moment, cigarette smoking on his lips. "... Perhaps he found someone else. Or perhaps someone else found him."

Suddenly, he paused and a frown appeared on his face.

"... That being said, I lack an alibi for that evening and night myself. So, ironically enough, logic dictates you should consider me a suspect as well."

For some reason, the way Souma said it seemed to indicate he wouldn't hold it against either even if they treated him as such.

"Other times I, as I said, met him at the Overlook itself. Just about each evening in fact, by the time it was possible to view stars - because that's what he did. With that telescope of his," Souma explained. "I use the path nearby, the one that runs past the totem, as my jogging path. But again, there's no one that can confirm this other than my own word. The thing is, however, I think he was being rather... secretive about it. Very careful not to be seen."

That certainly sounded rather... suspicious.

"And lastly, about the interesting changes in behavior, well..."

Souma let his eye gaze for a moment at both Alexstrasza and John, as if looking through them at anything they might have been hiding - for more lies.

"... Three people come to mind."

He lifted one finger.

"Caleb Montjoy. His behavior has gotten... erratic. Especially when he thinks nobody is looking."

He lifted a second finger.

"Vier Wolff. She might believe she's good at hiding it, but her body language speaks of barely holding it together."

And then he lifted a third finger.

"........."

For a moment, Souma paused, his mouth hanging open as if he was about to say something... but then decided against it. His eye howered somewhere behind Alexstrasza and John, as if staring at the empty air, thinking of something else... and then he pushed whatever thought he had aside, shaking his head slightly. As if to make sure the situation was still contained and secret, the boy then stood up from his chair and walked over to the door to make sure it was closed.

Finally, he turned around and looked at the two with his fingers still raised.

"..... Hwan Bin. And I'm not talking about that child he's been looking after. He's been doing... something in the middle of the night."

He frowned slightly.

"In the old outbuilding, to be more precise."

---

Prushka?
Location: Pinefall High Pool Building
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

The door opened with a slam.

The conversation that had quieted a bit came to a complete halt.

For a moment, time stood still.

Very, very still.

So still that it was almost as if all of the people present had become frozen in it, unable to move one way or another.

And what of the reactions of the two men inside? Well, what reaction could there be? What reaction could they possibly have in face of something this absurd, this surreal, to have come barging upon what had been rather tense situation, completely sucking out any air of seriousness out of it. Well, there was none. Or rather, they could not exhibit anything even close to being enough when presented by the monstrous sight of Prushka appearing out of nowhere while straddling Ahti's shoulders, delivering her sudden ultimatum and coming dangerously close of banging her head into the very low-hanging wall of the bunker-like office.

Thus, the two men inside the room could only present whatever approximation of their true feelings they had at the moment.

For Jake, it was a bug-eyed look like he had swallowed a can of cola whole, and was now trying to comprehend how he was still alive and why his breath had suddenly acquired the taste of New Coke.

For Inacio, it was an otherwise calm-looking expression of pure tranquility... if not for the fact that he also looked like he had just got done sucking the worst lemon on this particular side of the world.

Oh, yes, there was third person too.

--- Ahti Jalopeura.

Who had his face buried in his hands and looked like he wanted to just drop Prushka then and there and run out of the door.

The silence... it stretched.

Further.

And further.

And further.

Until...

".................... Dude. I..." The silver-haired janitor said, searching for the right words... yet failing to find them. "... I just completely forgot what I was about to say. I mean... what? What? Just, what?"

Inacio wasn't much better. He took one more look at Prushka and her unfortunate steed, and with that same sour expression...

"My romantic escapades aside, Prushka."

Spoke out with a hint of venom in his face.

"I wish you wouldn't use yours to barge in on other people like this." The guitarist scratched his cheek. "My possible girlfriend aside, your physical boyfriend looks like he's about to cry."

Jake, taking out a can of cola from his mini fridge and opening it, nodded.

"Yeah. Dude, you okay? Is she like, blackmailing your or something?"

Ahti simply hung his head as Jake took a long sip from his drink.

Sip that was the only sound to punctuate the silence that followed.

---

Elaine Winters
Location: Pinefall High Dormitory - Elaine's Room
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

Kean nodded.

"If there's lot to talk about, we should probably gather as many people as we can, first. I'm no betting man, but if I were, I'd wager that repeating yourself a dozen times about the same topics is gonna get annoying - fast," the silver-haired boy said as he nodded towards the door. "So, hmm... first pick up our tiniest shaman girl, then look for Coastrises? I thnk I heard the bespectacled sister in the common rooms earlier. Might give there a look. As for Samuel... no idea."

As the duo talked, they exited Elaine's room and started heading for another door - namely, that of Subaru Iburi. As they had surmised, it seemed that most of the people were out and about today already, with lights off in various rooms and no sign of anyone else in the corridor. Kean, having taken a look in both directions to see they were mor or less alone, decided to take this chance to talk some more.

"And what comes to that old ghost... I... well, I think he tried to help. If I remember correctly. Like I said, it's all just one big drug bender for me," he explained. "But I remember confronting him, and him trying to do... something? Maybe cast a spell? Or use some sort of item? It was unclear. Nevertheless, he got hit by the business end of that damned spear, which dispersed his form, somewhat... scattered his ectoplasm, I think? It didn't look fatal though... for what's that worth for a ghost."

Kean snorted.

"With any luck, he's been able to reform by now."

Finally, the two got Subaru's door in sight. They walked up to it and Kean gave it a firm nod. The first sound they heard as an answer was not, however, the voice of the Japanese girl - rather, it was the bark of a certain hunting dog who already seemed to be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. This was soon followed by a loud, squeaky yawn and a slight groan from the owner of the dog.

"Nmm... j-just a moment..." Subaru's drowsy voice echoed from the room. "Just... a second... pants... where are my pants...?"

And so the two of them waited.

And waited.

And waited, as the sound of something falling out of a wardrobe and bonking Subaru on her head suddenly broke the air, followed by a loud yelp and a squeak of the girl.

"... Oh, right."

Kean, apparently unable to stand the silence anymore, start speaking. His tone and body language was rather nonchalant, but there was an odd sense of tension hidden there as well.

"All this business talk is well and good, but while we got the time..." The boy continued, holding a momentary pause. "... Should we talk about that other thing too at some point? You know."

He coughed a little awkwardly.

"About us."

Well, at least he wasn't being hesitant about it!

--- However, before Elaine could even think of a reply.

"Oh, umm, hello! Good morning! I am so sorry about the wait!"

The door of Subaru's room flung open, swatting Kean on the forehead and causing the boy to recoil backwards while letting out a litany of curses. And in the doorway stood a familiar tiny shrine maiden, wearing nothing but a very unfashionable T-shirt and sweatpants... and Tonkori ran out from between her legs, greeting Elaine with a hearty woof and headbutt to her shins.

---

Elise Pelltier & Lucille Faraday
Location: Avery's Diner
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

Samuel quietly rubbed his chin, deep in thought.

"A biological armor of sorts. That... could explain it. In fact, that would cleanly explain the inconsistency of when it has appeared. If there's multiple 'pilots', then... yes. Then it could make sense," the fluffy-haired youth finally said. "However, what you said about the powers it exhibited, well... that makes me feel uneasy. It's not completely same, but as far as I know, Nevada was indeed an esper. Esper with the power to change the state of matter. So turning something liquid is not out of his ballpark. I only heard him talk about it once, when he was drunk, but I think he said that..."

Samuel's face turned into a frown.

"... It was one of the three things he had inherited from his 'genetic father' - whatever that meant. And that person was the exact reason why he had come to Road's End in the first place," he finally continued. "I admit, I don't know enough about espers to understand what that really means, but... well. It doesn't sound good. Angie said as much. I think she and Nevada had more than a few talks regarding the topic. Still... I do hope that this doesn't mean necromancy is involved."

Samuel's eyes flickered for a moment towards Lucille, the stoic face she wore and the tell-tale sign of the breakfast she had to keep mechanically eating not to just end up poking on it with her fork. The look in those eyes of his was not pity, he felt too considerate for that, but rather... it was like Samuel was wishing there was something he could have done for the blonde girl.

"... After all, the dead should be allowed to rest. Nothing good can come out of resurrecting them."

With that, Samuel continued to eat his pancakes, turning the discussion towards the other topics they had talked about.

"As for the Salpinx and the equipment with it. I can only guess it's something my grandfather prepared through his connections. After all, he was obsessed with the idea of preventing the supposed catastrophe. However, I'm the first one to admit I'm practically tech-illiterate, so I'm afraid I can't help you much regarding those, even if I went to take a look," the fluffy-haired youth said. "And what comes to Tris... to Patricia, uh... yes. Or, well. No. She wasn't a classmate. She came from outside of Road's End with her parents. Some sort of land-development project. They worked with Jack Pinkerton. But since the project was very time-consuming and big, that left Tris all alone... and eventually she found us. Joined our group."

Samuel sighed, letting go of his fork and knife.

"--- I don't think it's dangerous to engage the false world and false identity she's created. It's a strong one. Strong enough to be counted as self-hypnosis of sorts, made her into the strong warrior she wants to be. And, she seems happier there. After all, in a span of a single week, a friend of her died, another one was put into a coma, she encountered a monster... and then her parents died. Car accident. Ended up swerving, trying to avoid another car driven by this kid that came out of nowhere... and it didn't end well. The whole batch of road was thick with flames and smell of chemicals. Worst thing to happen at the worst time," Samuel continued. "It's... well, it also ties into that place. 'The House of Ultimate Evil'. Or that's what she sees it as, anyway. The one place she fears to return."

Glumly, the boy took a sip of his drink.

"... The place where the truth about her is. The home she used to live in. It's a trauma she can't overcome now. So, she views it as something utterly dreadful in her fantasy land."

---

Hisa Momoi
Location: Pinefall High Dormitory - Kitchen
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

Mercedes snorted, clearly amused.

"Good save, Nancy Drew," she snickered as she walked over to the kitchen counter where she sat down on a stool. "Like, real smooth criminal moves."

Even Sakura couldn't resist a giggle, but it did not come across as mean-spirited at all. Instead, the older girl simply looked happy that despite everything that had happened, they could still have moments like this, just a peaceful morning and some banter between what must have been one of the very, very odd groups of friends that have blossomed all around Pinefall. Indeed, all the people present were very different from each other, and did have other groups to hang out with too, but they had also shared some harrowing moments and challenges together, and come out stronger because of it.

"The breakfast is just about ready!" Sakura exclaimed, putting hands on her hips and smiling proudly. "There's enough rice porridge for everyone and then some, some assorted fruit that I could scrounge up - kiwi, strawberries, banana, that sort of stuff. Few oranges too. I also brewed more tea, some coffee, and there's hot cocoa if anyone wants. And yes, cinnamon for the porridge as well. Lastly, there's... well, that ties to your other question, and---"

The door, almost as if it had been waiting, suddenly opened up.

"--- Muu!"

And Gradient, smiling brightly and waving her hand energetically at Hisa, greeted everyone with her trademark sound. And in her hands, the girl was carrying a cardboard box of... what was that? Not cereal, that was for sure. But rather...

"Yup. I remembered I had packed away some Weetabix, so I asked the girls to pick it up from my room. There's milk in the fridge, so if you want that, go ahead - I recommend adding some banana slices," Sakura explained. "Oh and if someone is really hungry, there's also sandwich ingredients, so help yourselves~"

Having handed the box over to Sakura, Gradient made a beeline towards Hisa and gave her a rather squeezing hug in her usual excited way, driving the air momentary out of the scarred girl's lungs. Mercedes snickered at the sight, looking rather glad she wasn't - for once - being the target of the strange girl. Meanwhile To-Totesh, who had been following Gradient, made her way to the kitchen table and sat down, placing the thing she had been carrying before her.

A thing that looked like... a plastic brick? A rather large and flat one?

"... What? This is IBM Thinkpad 300," the native girl asked when confronted with everyone's curious stares. "D-Don't laugh. It's very useful. Works like charm. And only weighs three kilos. It's got all that I need, anyway. After all, To-Totesh is smart. I can make do with any machine!"

She pointedly hit her chest with her fist, as if adding more oomph to her declaration. Then the girl opened up the notebook laptop and started tapping away on the keyboard, eyes focused on the black screen where white text had started to scroll by with a considerable speed.

"Ahh, right, Ru," Pyry's voice cut into the atmosphere as he finally seemingly recovered from the foot in his mouth. "He left me a note, saying he wanted to stretch his legs today - also said that he wouldn't forget to be in disguise. If I had to guess, I'd say he's getting antsy about finding his sister. Though don't worry - he took the charm I gave him. If something happens, he can just use that and I'll know immediately that he's in trouble. Plus he wrote that he wouldn't go too far."

The boy pondered for a moment.

"... Though if we see him while we're driving around town, maybe we should pick him up, just in case."

Surprisingly enough, it was Mercedes who nodded.

"Like, not a bad idea from you. Being alone in this town is like asking for trouble or whatever - better catch your guy before something actually does go down," she said, picking up a strawberry from the bowl. "So, like, if we're about to get this show on the road, why don't we get to eating already, yeah?"

Then, with a sudden mischievous glint in her eyes, Mercedes turned towards Hisa.

"Think fast, Nancy Drew!"

--- And suddenly she lobbed that strawberry towards the other girl with an underhanded throw, making it fly in a beautiful arc towards Hisa.

[Airen]

Liana Skye/Hikari Sora
Location: Spade Queen Country Club - Kitchen
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994
Weather: Overcast

"Ah, sorry."

Finished with the lemon zest now, the raven-haired girl goes after the strawberries with a knife, removing the hulls and tops with clearly practiced motions.

"I wasn't trying to imply I thought he was a bad guy or anything... I mean, he's super reckless yeah, but he helped me out more than once last night, so I figured he's someone with their heart in the right place."

But I do have a job I was sent to this town to do, so profiling can't be helped.

Being a Time Cop has it's unavoidable duties.

-Parents likely met a violent end, considering how Cathie was talking about it. Family was distant from the town, to the point of the family composition being unclear... In places like Road's End, it'd be strange for people to not know their neighbors, even more strange if the unknown individual was a thirteen-year old, a child, from what she had seen...

There weren't too many kids around these parts, and thus not that many different 'circles' for the kids to run around in to begin with; she can see how Cathie might come to that conclusion, but his manner of speech, references to the Millennium Bug and knowledge of her name last night had set off a few too many red flags in her head...

So early family incident and his existence can't be verified any earlier than thirteen years of age...

Had he existed at all chronologically before that point? Or had he simply slipped into the family as his thirteen year old self? If the brother collaborated the story, no one would have any reason to doubt it unless they were specifically looking into it... And why would they? What's more noble than a kid working to not get himself and his brother sent away? Part time job gives him easy motives to be all over the town, as well as money to finance operations, keeps to himself in an attempt to minimize his impact on the timeline, and the 'ridiculously difficult books,' depending on what subjects they were on (and if he spent all his free time in his garage a guess to their contents could certainly be made) a sort of hazy conclusion could be reached...

Is it... Broken...?

Surely no one would try to fix a Tipler-Cylinder Engine by themselves, right?

A sigh, followed by a brief chuckle.

Well, it's all just theory crafting right now.

"I like guys to be a little mysterious anyway, it can be a sort of charm point... So long as they don't take it too far."

Like not explaining why he knew my surname without me telling him, or his interest in me in general.

Spent half of last night staring at me, didn't flinch at monsters or spirits or mana explosions, and went out of his way to clean some stuff off his clothes when he should have been guarding Aleen...

A suspect kinda guy.

The knife stops it's rhythmic dance, strawberries falling into a clear bowl shortly after.

"Kinda hard to make friends if you're closed off all the way, you know? And I say that as someone who likes closing herself off a bit."

One eye closes and a teasing smile crosses her features.

"...A bit of mystery can be a girl's charm point too... Or so I've been told, but feel free to ask about me if you'd like, I believe in being fair~"

If I get hit with the blueberries I get hit with the blueberries.

"Still, to crash his car so early on in life... That's another way to find yourself in a money hole... Is that what he's working on in this garage of his? I know a bit about repairing cars from my time living life on the road, so I might even be able to help... When uh... My schedule clears up anyway. Today seems like it's pretty much booked for me."

If he's still working on it all these years later... It must be important.

Sounds like they're struggling for money after all, wouldn't waste it on things that don't matter.

Into the saucepan the strawberries go, followed by the sugar -and after a bit of steady stirring- the lemon juice and zest, at this point, the jam only really needs basic maintenance to come out fine, a steady hand to stir it for about fifteen minutes or so, thus...

"But before all that... You're interested in this sort of thing Sierra?"

Turning her attention from Cathie for a moment, Liana offers a wooden spoon to the smaller girl, smiling in a gentle, maternal way, like she had done so long ago in that place, and...

"If you want, you could help me out a bit? Gotta keep stirring this to make sure it doesn't burn all the way to the bottom of the saucepan. Wouldn't be any fun if that happens."

A wink.

"Wanna give it a go while I get started on the eggs?"

[Mellon]

Anna Vandemeel
Location: Pinefall High Dormitory - Common Room
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

"Ended up sending my brother to the beach, that soldier girl to the country club and telling that white-haired kid to keep a close eye on the tiny child for the whoooole night~! And as it turned out, everything went well, for once~! Nobody died, and even if my brother got a little beat up, he's hard-headed so he can take it~"

The raven-haired Estonian girl let out a snort of amusement at Zhou’s words, even as her eyes remained glued at the screen, which now depicted a massive robot clashing with… something quite indescribable. It was unlikely that Minato shared her sister’s casual sentiment at his predicament. While she agreed with Zhou’s sentiment about her brother’s hard-headedness, hopefully Minato wasn’t too injured, all things considered.

The less people they had bed-bound, the better. Though from the looks of it, at least no one died. Though regarding the people in particular…White-haired kid probably referred to Bin which would make the “child” the kid that she and Winters picked up at the end of the week. Soldier girl was… well… Ramia was the first one that obviously popped into her mind, but there were a couple more who could fit that bill.

Well, something definitely went down in the country club from the looks of it. Perhaps that military spook, Challenger, had something to do with it? Putting out all the wrong vibes that one.

Hopefully Zane is still in one piece…

“Learn anything notable that might help us untangle this mess? What about this sudden admirer that I’m supposed to run into? Anything specific you can tell me?”

Anna’s eyes were locked on the screen, her attention seemingly locked halfway between the conversation and the show going on. Having said this, a moment later a brief look of puzzlement flashed across Anna’s eyes as they flickered over to Zhou’s position, before returning to the TV.

“Actually, who was the person smacking Minato around? Anyone we know?”

[Mormarth]

Elaine Winters
Location: Pinefall High Dormitory - Outside Subaru's Room
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast

"Hm, means we should probably head over there, maybe pick his brain some more, he was rambling some stuff that might be important, or at the very least, would be useful to know. Hope the guy's alright at least, kinda stuck his neck out, admittedly, didn't need that much convincin'."

I frowned, "Course, that guy somehow managed to drag Little Red Hellboy into the mix, along with whatever the hell that giant fucker was, plus the shapeshifter, so who knows," I let out a grumpy harumph, running a hand across my midsection.

I'd been lucky it hadn't been anything worse than a nasty scorch, some burn cream from the kit and a good night's rest and it's just another bruise. Probably won't even scar.

I shuffled my eyes onto Kean, noting the quiet tension in his shoulders at his words, and I felt my lips twitch, "Yeah, yeah, loverboy, keep it together, we'll have some alone time to, y'know, hash some things out or something..."

My voice begins confident, brash as always, and then it softens and shrinks, old hurts stirring in the pit.

Then I blinked and shuffled back a half-step as the door swung upon, bracing poor Kean's shoulder as he recoiled from the sudden, blunt assault on his person.

I, too, was then assaulted by a small, furry creature demanding tribute and adulation.

Which I gave, of course.

With both hands, as there was no point in half-measures when dealing with such a ferocious beast, as I let her know quite seriously.

I'm not doing the ass sniff though, I don't work like that.

At least I hoped not.

"Ah, good mornin' Subaru," I greeted from my kneeling position on the floor, finishing up my much more physical greeting to her erstwhile companion, "Just rambling around this morning, gathering up people who aren't already out and about and seeing about hashing out some of the weirdness from yesterday 'n such."

There was a small, sheepish pause.

"Also wanted to see if you were alright, y'know. We didn't exactly have the time or energy for a debriefing or anything."